April 4 (Bloomberg) -- About 400 workers from McDonald’s
Corp., Wendy’s Co. and Yum! Brands Inc. are striking today in
New York City as they call for higher wages.

“By far, it will be one of the biggest actions that fast-food workers have taken in this country,” Jonathan Westin,
executive director of advocacy group and organizer New York
Communities for Change, said in an interview before the strike.
The employees want $15-an-hour pay and the right to form a
union, he said.

The minimum wage in New York is $7.25 an hour. The strike,
which also includes workers from Burger King Worldwide Inc.,
Domino’s Pizza Inc. and Papa John’s International Inc., follows
a similar one in New York in November, where about 200 workers
walked off the job.

Employees from about 60 restaurants are striking, which may
force some locations to close, Westin said.

“At several of the stores we will have the majority of the
workforce in the stores out on strike,” he said. “It will be
difficult for businesses to continue as usual.”

A Burger King store in Brooklyn opened late today because
of the strike, Miguel Piedra, a company spokesman, said in an e-mail. Burger King restaurants offer pay and benefits that are
consistent with the industry, he said.

‘Fed Up’

Tabitha Verges, 29, who has worked at a Burger King in
Harlem as a cashier and cook for about four years, was among the
company’s employees to walk off the job today.

“I’m fed up and I’m asking for $15 hour and to create a
union without intimidation,” said Verges, who makes $7.25 an
hour. “I can barely get by,” she said, speaking in a telephone
interview. “I borrow from people to pay my bills. I’m trying
really hard not to get on welfare.”

McDonald’s rose 1.4 percent to $100.63 at the close in New
York. The shares have gained 14 percent this year. Burger King
shares were unchanged today and also have advanced 14 percent
this year.

“Employees are paid competitive wages and have access to a
range of benefits to meet their individual needs,” Heather
Oldani, a McDonald’s spokeswoman, said in an e-mailed statement.
The majority of McDonald’s stores are owned and operated by
independent business people, she said.

In February, President Barack Obama announced a plan to
raise the federal minimum wage to $9 an hour from $7.25. He also
proposed tying the minimum wage to the cost of living. While the
current federal minimum wage has been in effect since 2009, some
states have mandated higher wages.

Wage Raised

New York lawmakers last month passed a budget that includes
raising the state’s minimum wage to $9 an hour over three years.

“With the city’s high cost of living, the effective
minimum wage here is less than $4,” John C. Liu, New York City
comptroller, said in an e-mailed statement. The fast-food
workers who are striking need a raise, he said.

Last year, Liu proposed raising the city’s minimum wage to
$11.50 an hour.

McDonald’s, which has about 14,100 U.S. locations, is the
world’s largest restaurant by sales. Globally, about 81 percent
of McDonald’s stores are franchised.